Deafness Research by Sumon Ghosh (Founder of ACNRC)

Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. (ACNRC)

Deafness is the complete loss of your hearing. Some people are born deaf while other people may become deaf. Deafness can be diagnosed by having a hearing test.

Major causes of hearing loss include congenital or early onset childhood hearing loss, chronic middle ear infections, noise-induced hearing loss, age-related hearing loss, and ototoxic drugs that damage the inner ear. The impacts of hearing loss are broad and can be profound.

What are the four types of deafness?

• There are several parts of the ear, including the outer, middle, and inner ear.
• A hearing loss can happen when any part of the ear or auditory (hearing) system is not working in the usual way.
• There are four types of hearing loss: conductive, sensorineural, mixed, and auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder.

Symptoms

• Muffling of speech and other sounds.
• Trouble understanding words, especially when in a crowd or a noisy place.
• Trouble hearing the letters of the alphabet that aren’t vowels.
• Often asking others to speak more slowly, clearly and loudly.
• Needing to turn up the volume of the television or radio.

A note from Aradhya Clinic & Neuro Research Center (ACNRC)

A hearing loss of up to 20 decibels below the hearing threshold is still considered to be normal hearing. More severe hearing loss can be described according to severity, as follows: Mild hearing loss: Hearing loss of 20 to 40 decibels. Moderate hearing loss: Hearing loss of 41 to 60 decibels.

Based on British Society of Audiology definitions of hearing loss, this is the decibel hearing level range each of these terms refer to:

• mild (21–40 dB)
• moderate (41–70 dB)
• severe (71–95 dB)
• profound (95 dB).

• How is hearing measured?
• Hearing tests check a person’s ability to hear the loudness and pitch of sounds. The results are charted on a graph (audiogram) to help pinpoint the severity and causes of hearing problems. Tests include pure tone audiometry, using an audiometer, and speech discrimination tests.

Management and Treatment

Treatments are different depending on the type of hearing loss you have.

Conductive hearing loss

• Medications, like antibiotics, to treat ear infections.
• Surgeries, including tympanoplasty, to repair a ruptured eardrum, tympanostomy to insert ear tubes or surgery to remove tumors.
• Procedures to remove earwax or other objects in your ear canal.

Sensorineural hearing loss

• Medications, like corticosteroids, to reduce swelling in your cochlea hair cells. (You can damage your cochlea hair cells if you’re exposed to loud noise.)
• Management like hearing aids and cochlear implants.

Mixed hearing loss

• Treatments vary based on the specific issues affecting your outer, middle and inner ear.

Role of speech pathologist for deafness people:

If your child is having speech delays due to hearing loss, a speech therapist can help them learn to speak clearly and develop their listening skills.

Speech therapy focuses on voice and speech-language skills, while hearing therapy deals with hearing and hearing impairment.

Sound therapy is a method that improves hearing. In particular, it is used clinically for the common management of tinnitus, a bothersome condition that can lead the person affected to suffer from anxiety and depression. Sound therapy is also often recommended for addressing a variety of other common hearing problems.

What tools are used for speech therapy?

Speech Therapy Materials and Tools

• Audio recorder.
• Video recorder.
• Models.
• Mirror.
• Tongue depressor.
• Reinforcers.
• Reference materials.